State News

1:37 pm

Fri February 14, 2014

Dillard feels sorry for Rutherford

A Republican candidate for Illinois governor says he feels sorry for one of his primary opponents.

Treasurer Dan Rutherford has been accused in a federal lawsuit of making inappropriate sexual advances on an employee. He denies all of the allegations.

State Senator Kirk Dillard, who’s running against Rutherford, says the accusations have sucked some of the air out of the race.

"He’s got issues. There’s a problem and a question and we all work hard. He wants to be governor like I do and I don’t like to see anybody stumble."

Rutherford had said he would make public the treasurer office’s own internal review of the accusations. But an attorney says that review will be presented to fight the allegations in court and won’t be provided to the public.